Abstract: The present paper highlights on the need to understand the correlation of the characteristics of the catalyst layer with the performance of the polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell (PEMFC). This paper deals with the correlation of the platinum loading in the catalyst layer and the performance of the polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell and also the correlation of the required hydrophilicity/hydrophobicity in the catalyst layer to get the optimum performance under given operating conditions.

Key words : PEMFC, Hydrophilic, Hydrophobic, Catalyst layer, Platinum loading